Most companies begin on a shoe-string -- under-funded, under the gun, and under the radar. The company I co-founded in 1986, Idea Champions, was no exception.

When my business partner and I began, we had almost nothing -- just an idea, some chutzpah, and a deep desire to succeed.

While we both were likable, smart, and skillful schmoozers, we had zippo in the way of a marketing plan.

Racking what was left of our over-caffeinated brains, it soon became abundantly clear that we needed some kind of showcase, some kind of "window to the world" -- a place to strut our entrepreneurial stuff and get in front of the people who were the likely buyers of our service...

Back in those days, this meant one thing -- renting a booth at the ASTD convention -- the annual meet market in the training and development field.

The thought of this made the two of us slightly nauseous, since we had "cased the joint" a year before and come away with three impressions:

1. We didn't have enough money to get in the door
2. We didn't have the right marketing materials
3. We probably should have gone into our father's business.

Clearly, we'd have to do something different if we were going to distinguish ourselves from the 600 other companies vying for the same customers.

Giving out slick brochures was out of the question. (We didn't have any). Giving out our client list was also out of the question. (You could count the number of our clients on one hand -- the hand of Vinny "Three Finger" Scalucci).

In a flash of entrepreneurial mania, it became obvious that we would need a lot of balls to pull this off. Yes, the kind you're thinking of, but also another kind -- juggling balls.

The AHA? We'd create an "anti-booth" and teach people how to juggle. Our booth would be a rest stop, a haven, a place for thousands of convention-weary people to recuperate from all the other booths with their endless supply of Hershey's kisses, business jargon, and fishbowls full of business cards.

OK. So we didn't have a marketing plan, but we did have inspiration. And even more than that, a very specific idea of how to get the attention of the marketplace.

Our plan was simple.

We'd bring a posse of our juggling-savvy friends and teach thousands of convention-goers how to do something they'd secretly wanted to learn for years -- juggle. No hard sell. No corporate speak. No used-car salesman smiles -- just the experience of having a breakthrough.

And our message would be delivered in 30 seconds or less.

Here's how it worked: As aspiring jugglers dropped their balls, we'd drop in a few well-timed comments to help them make the link between what it took to learn to juggle and what it took to innovate.

Our booth was wildly popular. People loved it. People loved us. And we always had a crowd.

But "having a crowd" doesn't necessarily translate into sales -- and sales is what we were after. Were we pumped? Yes. Were we optimistic? That, too. But still we had nothing to show for our efforts.

That is, until the afternoon of the third day.

That's when we spied the proverbial big fish walking in our direction. DIRECTOR OF TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT, AT&T his name tag screamed.
This was the moment -- the moment of truth.

The impeccably dressed Mr. Big approached. He stopped, tried to look through me, and spoke:

"What's this?" he asked.

"Um.... what does it look like?" I replied.

"Juggling?" he responded.

"That's right!" I said. "Would you like to learn?"

Ah.... the existential moment of truth! Dare he lay down his plastic bags of information to try something new? Dare he stop being in charge and become a student for a change? Dare he run the risk of failing.

He looked at me. I looked at him. Then he cleared his throat.

"I've been trying to learn to juggle for 25 years," he confessed, looking at his watch. "OK. Teach me... but... all I have is five minutes."

By the grace of the juggling Gods, we taught the man. In five minutes. His mind was blown. Borderline ecstatic, he reached into his wallet and pulled out a business card.

"I don't know what you guys do," he laughed, "but I know you're not a juggling company. Call me on Monday and let's talk."

We did. He took our call -- and spent the next 20 minutes telling us about his weekend juggling adventures. How he couldn't stop. How he taught his son. How he had a ton of fun.

Then he started grilling us about our work. Apparently, he liked what he heard, because the next thing we know he's inviting us to pilot our creative thinking training at AT&T.

Which we did.

The training was a big hit -- so much so, that our now juggling-savvy client invited us back two more times the next month to do it again, (just to make sure the glowing feedback wasn't a "false positive.")

It wasn't.

Those sessions were also a success. So much so, that Mr. New-Juggler-After-25-Years-of-Frustration pulled the corporate trigger and licensed our training.

During the next three months we taught nine AT&T trainers how to facilitate it. Then, when Lucent split off from AT&T, we taught their trainers and enjoyed five years of great results and even greater passive income.

How did it all begin?

By doing something different. By going with our strengths. By differentiating ourselves from the competition. By translating theory into practice. By giving people an experience, not just words. By skillfully responding to a moment of truth. By having fun. And...by translating all of the above into a service that delivered on it's promise.

Balls got us started, but it was execution that sealed the deal.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT:
1. What risk are you willing to take to grow your business?
2. What strengths of yours do you need to leverage?
3. What moment of truth is fast approaching for you?

The above story is excerpted from my next book (WISDOM AT WORK: 40 Stories of Love, Learning and Letting Go from the Front Lines of Business).

If you are an agent or publisher who resonates with where I'm coming from, let's talk.

Comments

Wow! That;s a champion idea all right. How inspiring, MItch! Talk about an idea with balls! What balls to be who who are instead of trying to fit in when you're clearly not one of them, and end up at the bottom of a throw away plastic bag of info.
This is an AMAZING lesson that I want to remember next time I get on the court. Love, Vita

Posted by: vita Roth at March 22, 2009 08:57 AM

Mitch!

loved the juggling story. I'm married to a juggling PE coach who teaches the kids K-6th how to juggle as part of PE. When they get to 20 cascades in a row they get an official juggling pin and their name goes on a big wooden plaque in the gym.

You always have an extraordinary take on creativity - what a joy to read your posts!

Mitch, powerful lesson on risk with reward. You were both innovative and congruent with showcasing your skills. Many clients want a break through by using the same tools and techniques that got them stuck. Great example of upsetting the expectation apple cart and delivering a powerful experience that transcends the tradeshow.

Thanks, David, for your kind words. Amen to what you say about people wanting a breakthrough using the same tools and techniques that got them stuck. I like what Bruce Lee had to say about technique when he was constantly being besieged by wannabee martial artists -- as if technique was sufficient or there was ONE technique that was his secret. Bruce Lee went way beyond technique. He discovered the place within himself (after years of practice) where he could be totally in the moment and responsive, appropriately, to whatever was needed to secure the optimal result. Most organizations have no clue what this is about. Nor do most people. "Chance favors a prepared mind" is an approximation of this truth, but I am not talking about chance. I am talking about being tuned in and being moved. If we could all just trust this a little bit more....

Posted by: Mitch Ditkoff at April 5, 2011 01:32 AM

Yeah, I remember my 'Balls' moment too! That 'Training Weekend' was great, and helped make life better- and more fun since!

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Who Are We?

Idea Champions is a consulting and training company dedicated to awakening and nurturing the spirit of innovation. We help individuals, teams and entire organizations tap into their innate ability to create, develop and implement ideas that make a difference.

Authors

MitchDitkoff.comClick here for the simplest, most direct way, to learn more about Idea Champions' semi-fearless leader, Mitch Ditkoff. Info on his keynotes, workshops, conferences, and more.

Storytelling at Work
Storytelling at Work is Mitch Ditkoff's newly published book about the power of personal storytelling in business – why it matters and what you and your organization can do to leverage the impact of storytelling in the workplace.

Mitch Ditkoff, the Co-Founder and President of Idea Champions, has recently been voted a top 5 speaker in the field of innovation and creativity by Speakers Platform, a leading speaker's bureau.

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